The present invention is directed to a system and method of assesing, monitoring and modifying at least one characteristic of a user on-line, and, more particularly, to a system and method that interactively monitors, and coaches a user in developing and achieving a personal growth plan, as well as a system and method that interacts with a user to assist the user in maintaining activities that foster personal growth either in the abstract or in accordance with a personal growth plan.
Various tools or inventories have been developed to determine behavioral characteristics. The term xe2x80x9ccharacteristicxe2x80x9d refers to a variety of things that may be referred to as a profile or style, such as a person""s creativity, analytical ability, risk taking level, etc. These tools are helpful in making a person aware of particular strengths and weaknesses associated with the determined characteristic. Organizations, such as an employer, also find such tools helpful in assessing characteristics of particular individuals that can affect the way those individuals contribute to the success of the organization. In addition, such tools can be helpful in determining what characteristics are desired in order to achieve success for a particular individual or organization.
An example of such a tool is a Creatrix Inventory developed by the Richard Byrd Company. The Creatrix Inventory is designed to help people identify their levels of creativity, i.e., the degree to which they can produce unconventional ideas, as well as their assertion toward risk taking, i.e., high, moderate or low.
The Creatrix Inventory consists of multiple statements to which an individual responds by indicating his or her degree of agreement or disagreement with the statement. Half of these statements are based on literature about risk taking, and half are based on literature about creativity. After an individual completes the inventory, he or she scores it according to the directions provided and then plots the scores on a matrix called the Creatrix. The vertical scale of this matrix designates the degree to which the respondent is a risk taker; the horizontal scale designates the degree of the respondent""s creative abilities.
The Creatrix is divided into eight zones, each of which represents a creativity/risk-taking orientation: Sustainer, Modifier, Challenger, Practicalizer, Innovator, Synthesizer, Dreamer, and Planner. These different orientations can be useful in understanding the differences among people within work groups. For example, when group members discuss the impact of their different orientations on planning, decision making, and problem solving, they can develop a clearer perception of the group""s resources. Identifying orientations also can be helpful in career-counseling and career-development efforts, in team building, enhancing one""s self-understanding and in changing an entire organization""s culture. Of course, other types of inventories exist to measure other characteristics of a person or organization.
Typically these kinds of tools are applied manually with an administer handing out individual forms that need to be filled out, scored, and returned. With the advent of computers and the Internet, it is desirable to replace the paper and pen method with a computerized one.
A system has been designed where an individual can access the Creatrix Inventory over the Internet and take the inventory. After the user takes the inventory, information about that user""s behavioral characteristic is displayed to the user based on the information supplied by the individual.
Often, however, finding out about one""s behavioral characteristic is only the first step. Often an individual desires to have a different characteristic, i.e. a targeted characteristic, that may have certain strengths the user desires or lacks certain weakness that may be present in the user""s current characteristic. It would be desirable to provide assistance to the user, particularly over the Internet, to interactively develop and monitor a personal growth plan for that individual. Also, it is desirable to interactively provide the user with a selection of aides that are tailored to allow the user to achieve the targeted profile. In addition, it is desirable to provide interactive feedback to a user""s selection of aides that may assist in achieving the plan. And finally, it is desirable to provide the user with motivational aides that assist the user to perform activities that are beneficial to that user""s personal growth.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of interactively assessing a user""s current profile and developing a personal growth strategy on-line to achieve a target profile. The method includes the steps of:
(a) electronically displaying an inventory questionnaire to a user via a display unit;
(b) electronically receiving inputs from the user regarding the inventory questionnaire;
(c) electronically generating a growth strategy matrix based on the inputs received from the user wherein the growth strategy matrix reflects the user""s current profile; and
(d) electronically receiving input from the user regarding the targeted profile the user wishes to adopt.
In addition, the method also includes the step of electronically generating options from which the user can select at least one of a plurality of aids to assist the user in achieving the targeted profile.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a system for interactively assessing a user""s current profile and developing a personal growth strategy on-line to achieve a target profile. The system includes:
a computing device; and
a computer program comprising one or more program modules executable by the computing device wherein the program module comprises;
a module for displaying an inventory questionnaire to a user via a display unit;
a module for receving inputs from the user regarding the inventory questionnaire;
a module of generating a growth strategy matrix based on inputs received from the user wherein the growth strategy matrix reflects the user""s current profile;
a module for receiving input from the user regarding the targeted profile the user wishes to adopt; and
a module for generating options from which the user can select at least one of a plurality of aids to assist the user in achieving the targeted profile.
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for carrying out the inventive method.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave readable by a computing system and encoding a computer program of instructions for executing a computer process performing the inventive method.